Addiction Counseling and Coaching
Substance Use / Harm Reduction / Sex / Pornography / Codependency
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Addictions Counseling and Coaching
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​I have been working in addiction since 2013 and have become very passionate about working with individuals struggling with addiction. It is my goal to meet you where you are and support you and your family in managing the symptoms of addiction, recovering from the consequences of addiction, and to learn skills to improve your ability to reduce your relapse potential.
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Substance Use counseling/coaching can be used for Couples, individuals, or families.
Anyone suffering from a drug, alcohol, or behavioral addiction knows how powerful and devastating this disease can be. Sometimes a person abusing substances believes they are managing addiction on their own, when in reality their addiction is managing them. A professional addiction counselor can help a person abusing substances or behaviors at any stage of readiness to achieve and maintain sobriety.
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Counselors are an important part of addiction therapy and their role and involvement in the treatment process is instrumental to recovery.
Addiction counselors can help support you throughout the treatment process and create an individualized plan for recovery, relapse prevention, and after-care.
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What Does an Addiction Counselor/coach Do?​
With the help of an addiction counselor, you can explore what caused you to use drugs or alcohol, share and process feelings, increase awareness of negative thought and behavior patterns, learn healthy coping skills, identify potential triggers, and create a long-term plan to sustain your sobriety. This type of therapy can include individual, couples, or family counseling.
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Harm Reduction
Recognizing an addiction problem in someone you know, or in yourself can be harder than it seems? Addiction is a chronic disease that affects the brain’s reward, motivation, and memory functions. Someone with an addiction will crave a substance or other behavioral habits. They’ll often ignore other areas of life to fulfill or support their desires.
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Many individuals are not aware that they have a problem until they have experienced loss, or their life starts to fall apart. It is ok to be apprehensive about counseling and treatment. When approaching this topic we will focus on harm reduction to support you in the state of change that you find yourself in. It is important to move at your own pace and therapy will provide support and education to help you move forward.
General signs of addiction are:
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lack of control, or inability to stay away from a substance or behavior
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decreased socialization, like abandoning commitments or ignoring relationships
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ignoring risk factors, like sharing needles despite potential consequences
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physical effects, like withdrawal symptoms or needing a higher dosage for effect
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Resources:
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Sex and Pornography Addiction
What is sex addiction?
Pretty much everyone loves sex, and it’s normal to want to seek out sex because it makes you feel good. However, there are millions of people who struggle with sex addiction, and they seek out sex in unhealthy ways. Sex addiction is something that can ruin lives if people don’t get help. There are various sex addiction symptoms that you should look out for if you’re worried that you or someone that you care about might have a problem. Understanding sex addiction symptoms and knowing when to get help could help you to keep your mental health from getting too bad.
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What is Pornography Addiction?
One of the major issues with porn addiction is that it ‘desensitizes’ people from the excitement of genuine sex, as well as conditioning them to expect all sex to be like the sex they see on porn. Pornographic sex tends to be extreme, as well as specifically designed for the pleasure of the viewer rather than for the pleasure of the individuals involved. Those who grow up expecting real sex to be like porn are likely to be not only confused themselves, but a deep disappointment (and possibly damaging) to their future spouse. Real life sex is far more intimate, co-operative, and private than that presented upon the screen – and it comes with a whole lot of weird sensations, smells, and tastes which porn doesn’t portray! This can make people with a porn addiction upset, confused, or even angry – and they may try to ‘rectify’ the situation by attempting to make real sex more like the porn they’ve viewed.
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Symptoms of Sex or Pornography addiction
- Extreme sexual Cravings
- Engaging in unsafe sexual practices
- Missing work or other important events to have sex/watch porn
- Constant cheating
Lying about time engaged in pornography
- Developing depression and other problems
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Information
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Addiction/Codependency
Addiction and Codependency
Have you ever felt powerless over your partner's use or addictive behavior? Have you ever struggled with engaging in behaviors or substances that impact your relationship? Do you ever feel like you have to defend your partner's, or your own, behavior to minimize the social impacts of the addictive behavior? Couples therapy for individuals struggling with addiction or partners struggling with codependency works to educate both partners on the cycle of addiction, provide resources to build a supportive network, and encourages partners to move away from the codependent behavior that has been guiding their life choices in the past. This type of therapy helps individuals to build confidence, assertively communicate, and support each other on the path to sobriety.
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Why are codependents attracted to addicts?
Codependents tend to be people-pleasers who put their relationship with someone else above their own interests, often to the detriment of both parties. Codependents tend to enable addicts because, subconsciously, they believe they need that addict to remain sick.
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Codependence is sometimes described as an addiction to another person, rather than a substance. When substance abuse develops into addiction, even the closest interpersonal relationships erode. It can be very difficult for someone suffering from addiction to build and maintain healthy relationships — as a result, codependence and addiction often occur together.
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SAMHSA National Helpline
Confidential free help, from public health agencies, to find substance use treatment and information.
1-800-662-4357
